


Malec-o-Lantern

by Fluxx



Series: The Spook Cruise, 2017 [10]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff, Halloween, M/M, Malec, Pumpkins
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-20
Updated: 2017-10-20
Packaged: 2019-01-20 11:40:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12432063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fluxx/pseuds/Fluxx
Summary: Alec brings home a pumpkin that he insists on carving without magic, the Mundane way. The problem? He's never done this before. Luckily, Magnus presents the perfect idea...Prompt response for The Spook Cruise, 2017:Malec + pumpkin carving.Submit a prompt for The Spook Cruise!





	Malec-o-Lantern

Magnus frowned as he heard the door open, looking up from the charm he was crafting for a client. “Alexander?” he called, leaning over to get a better look the foyer. “I thought you were going to be late?”

“Me too. Ended up blowing through those reports.” He set whatever he’d been carrying down on their table with a loud  _thud_ , then walked over to Magnus’s desk to greet his boyfriend with a small but no less meaningful kiss. “Is that okay… ?”

The worried look curling Alec’s features brought Magnus to lightly chuckle. “Of course it is. I was just surprised, is all.” He put down the ingredients he’d been holding - a few strands of werewolf fur and a vial of demon ichor - then stood up to properly greet Alec with a tight hug. As he did, his eyes wandered over to their table, and his brow peaked at the object he found sitting there, large and bulging and aggressively orange with a stout muddy-green stalk curling maybe three inches long off the top.

“A pumpkin?” Magnus inquired, though he obviously needed no confirmation of what the object was. He stepped around Alec to walk towards it, one arm crossed low over his open, silk shirt to support his other by its elbow. Inquisitive eyes flickered over the seasonal squash, swiftly deeming the fruit to be a prime specimen of its kind, and he turned a wide grin to his partner. “What’ll it be, then? Pie? Soup? Cookies?”

“What? No,” Alec replied, face screwed in confusion. As he crossed the room to join Magnus by the table, his deft fingers plucked a small blade from his thigh holster, flourishing in an expert and practice motion. The glint of his blade in the day’s waning light was echoed in the gleam of his eyes. “We’re going to carve it. For Halloween.”

“With  _that_?” Magnus laughed, nodding towards Alec’s dagger. “There’s hardly any need.” As he turned back to the pumpkin, already his fingers began to coil in the air beside his face. “What do you want it to look like? We could do a skull, or perhaps a ghost… I could try one of those fancier designs, the ones where they only half-carve the—”

“ _Magnus_ ,” Alec interrupted, his free hand catching Magnus’s by the wrist. To his boyfriend’s befuddlement, he pressed the hilt of his dagger into Magnus’s hand, then curled his fingers around it and held his hand within the cup of his own. “No magic. I thought… I thought it’d be nice to do something…”

Magnus watched Alec curiously as the Shadowhunter sought the right word. Slowly, a smile curled his lips, and he offered, “…mundane?”

Alec blinked, dark eyes snapping over to him, and then slowly he smiled in return. “Yeah. Something simple, tactile… Something to pass the time together.”

Of all the requests he’d ever received, this one was certainly towards the top of Magnus’s list so far as quaintness was concerned. Unsurprisingly, the rest of the top ten slots were all taken up by one thing or another from Alec - his precious Alexander Lightwood, endlessly surprising in his refreshing and pure simplicity. He imagined Alec still didn’t quite understand the full breadth of it. For him, it was enough just knowing that these kinds of things brought handsome smiles to Magnus’s face. But for Magnus, these simpler things were a breath of fresh life in a world filled with angels, demons, immortality, and war, the kind of steadying sigh that reminded you why you wanted to live in the first place.

“That sounds lovely, Alexander,” he at last replied, knowing saying anything more than that would likely only serve to confuse Alec. He drew out a chair for Alec, then settled into another, placing the dagger down upon the table so he could idly tap his goatee’d chin. “We  _do_  still need to decide on what to carve, however.”

“Any particular inspirations?” Alec asked, spinning around his chair so he could sit in it backwards, his arms folded upon the chair’s back. “I’ve never really done this before.”

“You haven’t?” There was something like pity in Magnus’s voice. His own childhood had been rather turbulent to say the very least, and anyway had taken place in both the wrong century and the wrong country to partake in the custom, but he’d long ago come to understand the unique joy it brought to many Mundane children across the world.

Alec shook his head, not in the least bit disappointed or sad about it. How could he be, not knowing what it was he’d apparently missed out on? “Too busy protecting the Mundies from  _real_  vampires, werewolves, witches…” He shared a smirk with Magnus, then turned to the pumpkin and reached over to turn it around a bit. “I grabbed the biggest one I could find, so we’d have enough room.”

“For what, the entire Sistine Chapel?” Magnus mused, eyes widening as he actually took in just how massive the pumpkin was. “Well, if you’re going to do something, best to go all-out, I suppose.”

Alec grinned at Magnus, already enjoying the activity even though they really hadn’t done much yet. His eyes sliding back to the pumpkin, he reached out to curiously draw a finger along its swells and crevices. “I don’t want to do the typical Jack-o-Lantern thing. And I don’t especially want to do anything horrific or scary. Something fun and… and simple, but still a little… not spooky, necessarily. Halloween-y? I mean, it  _should_  fit with the holiday, after all.”

As he listened to Alec ramble on, Magnus couldn’t suppress a light chuckle, a fanciful gleam sparkling amid his eyes. With all the burdens that typically weighed on the Head of the New York Institute, it was a nice reprieve to see Alec fussing over something so inconsequential. The Shadowhunter’s mind could puzzle over the problem freely, without any worry for the consequences. It reminded him much of the way a child might consider what crayon to draw with, and it held a certain precious innocence that made Alec seem more like a precious cherub than a glorious angel. Something fragile and vulnerable that needed to be protected and cherished, rather than a holy force to be reckoned with.

This really was turning out to be one of Alec’s best ideas, for reasons he would likely never come to understand.

“I think I have an idea,” Magnus replied at last.

As he explained what he had in mind, he watched Alec’s excitement swell, pulling his every feature big and wide into a beaming grin. Just a hint of wickedness touched Alec’s eyes, the spark of a mischievous sprite, and soon he was eagerly nodding. “Yeah, yeah!” he exclaimed. “That’d be perfect!”

“Very well, then!” Magnus chuckled, rising from his chair with a smooth and elegant motion, the same ethereal grace that seemed to embody his every movement.

Alec turned to watch his boyfriend drift swiftly and soundlessly through the room towards his desk, his brow wrinkling in intrigue. “Where are you going? My daggers will work well enough, won’t they?”

“For the carving, sure,” Magnus replied lightly. Delicate fingertips plucked a black marker from the long, shallow dish stationed at the head of his desk. “But first you have to draw out our design. It’ll be the guide for our carving.”

“Why do  _I_  have to draw it?” Alec scowled, taking the pen from Magnus. “It was your idea!”

“That’s precisely why, my dear!” Looking perhaps a bit too smug for Alec’s liking, Magnus dropped back into his chair, one leg draping over the other and his fingers curling beside his devilish smirk. “I never get to see your more creative side.”

“Because I don’t  _have_  one,” Alec muttered, uncapping the marker and rolling it awkwardly in his fingertips. He glanced between it and the pumpkin, then scooted his chair closer to the table so he could get to work drawing out their design.

“Of course you do, Alexander. Everyone does! It’s just not as prominent or physical for some compared to others.”

Alec cast a raised brow over his shoulder. “Oh, so you  _don’t_  like my nightly experimentation?”

Magnus only wasn’t scowling because his face was too busy blushing. “That’s not fair. You know that’s not what I meant!”

His boyfriend snickered before returning to the pumpkin. “I know. I just like seeing you flustered. It doesn’t happen very often!”

At that, Magnus couldn’t help but laugh, leaning forward to fondly draw his fingers through Alec’s messy hair. “And yet, you always manage to somehow do it. You’ve grown quite devious in recent months!”

Alec’s eyes flickered towards Magnus briefly before he suddenly turned his face to steal a quick kiss. “I’ve had a good teacher,” he whispered against Magnus’s lips as they parted.

A shudder rippled through Magnus, much to Alec’s delight, and with a mild scoff Magnus tapped the tip of Alec’s nose. “Focus on the damn pumpkin, or I’m going to take matters - and  _you_  - into my own hands.”

Alec bit his lip, goosebumps of his own sweeping across his skin. “Such a hard decision,” he chuckled lowly, then capped the marker and leaned away from the pumpkin. He gave it a satisfied nod, his hand idly laying upon Magnus’s back. “Luckily, I’ve already finished this part. What do you think?”

“Mmm,” Magnus murmured, turning his head to regard Alec’s drawing. He made a show of carefully studying the crude linework, then finally replied, “…It’s awful.”

It earned him a playful shove. “Oh, shut up,” Alec laughed, trading his marker for his dagger. He made to pass it to Magnus, but again his boyfriend was departing the table, and so again Alec released an exasperated sigh. “ _Now_  what? We aren’t ready to carve it yet?”

“You really  _haven’t_  done this before, have you?” Magnus fondly chuckled. “Go ahead and start cutting around the stem,” he instructed, indicating the top of the pumpkin with a circling gesture. “We need to remove the top so we can clear out the insides.” His voice grew distant as he disappeared into the kitchen, but nonetheless he continued to explain things, even as Alec already sank his dagger into the top of the fruit. “You’ll want to make a smooth, contiguous cut all around the top, so we can replace it once we hollow out the pumpkin. And make sure it’s wide enough to fit an arm!”

Alec followed the instructions as best he could, silently hoping the entire time he wasn’t screwing anything up. It seemed simple enough a task, at least, and his dagger proved plenty adequate for this particular task. Still, as he eyed the bits of fruit caught in the blade’s sunken grooves and intricate patterns, he distantly began to regret using it over a common kitchen knife. Approaching the end of his circular cut, he stood up and leaned over the pumpkin, tip of his tongue caught between his teeth as he carefully completed his round. As soon as he did, the top of the pumpkin wiggled slightly, fully loosed from the rest of the fruit. A victorious gleam bright across his face, Alec extracted his dagger and set it down upon the table.

“Careful!” Magnus cried.

Alec started slightly as a burst of blue smoke plumed across the table’s surface, leaving a newspaper in its wake. “Sorry,” he bashfully replied, laying his soiled blade upon the protective surface.

Magnus offered a kindly smile, setting the large bowl he’d taken from the kitchen upon the newspaper. “It’s fine. Go ahead and lift the top off!” he encouraged, already rolling up his sleeves. “Set it down on the paper - there will probably be some...” He grimaced as Alec lifted the pumpkin’s cap, long and pulpy strands of seeds hanging from the inch or so of fruit. “...Yes, that,” he eventually finished, gesturing towards the stringy mess.

“Should I... uh... do something with it... ?” Alec asked, moving aside so Magnus had room to approach the pumpkin.

“Yes,” he replied, attacking the pumpkin’s innards with a metal spoon so harshly it made Alec jump. He scraped his implement along one side of the fruit, pulling out a pile of pulp and dumping it into the bowl. “Shave it off and add it to the bowl with the rest of it.”

“You going to do something with it?” Alec curiously asked as he obliged. “Is there enough here to cook or something?”

“Absolutely!” Magnus chirped, pulling out another spoonful. Tiny bits of pumpkin flecked his muscular arm, and Alec had to swallow down a stray thought of licking it clean. “I’ll clean and toast the seeds for our party Friday evening. A nice blend of cinnamon, sugar, and cayenne will make the  _perfect_  glaze for them! Of course, I’ll also store a handful for personal use - there are a number of brews which call for pumpkin seeds, and they’re difficult to come by out-of-season. Depending on how much pulp we carve out, I may be able to make a pie, or some cookies at the very least. I’m not sure about the strands... Some kind of puree, I imagine. Catarina’s surely got some kind of salve or other we can make from them.”

As Magnus rambled on and on, a chuckle played at Alec’s lips. He loved when Magnus got excited about something, especially when it was something he’d brought about. Usually, Magnus’s talents were used at someone else’s beck-and-call, done more out of a need than a desire. Moments like these, where Magnus could simply  _enjoy_  his vast knowledge of magic, could invoke any number of spells, charms, and crafts for his own use rather than someone else’s, were a treat in and of themselves. Alec was pleased, and more than a little relieved, Magnus could still find joy in this massive and ofttimes double-edged part of himself.

“Alexander? Earth to Alexander?”

Alec shook out of his reverie. “Sorry, got distracted.”

Magnus smirked. “I can see that.” He nodded to the pumpkin before turning to retreat back to the kitchen. “You can start carving, if you like. I just need to wash up.”

“Aww,” Alec exaggeratedly whined, eyeing Magnus’s arms.

His boyfriend rolled his eyes, then turned and swept back to the kitchen. “I’ll just be a moment.”

As Magnus washed his hands, Alec set back to work cutting along the edges of their design. For now, he kept his cuts shallow, per Magnus’s advice when the warlock had first described the idea. By the time Magnus rejoined him beside the pumpkin, he’d finished tracing the marker lines, and they could now go about deciding which areas to cut out completely and which ones to only half-shed, leaving behind thinned areas that would glow before the candlelight. With the both of them working at it, they finished in little over an hour, at last stepping back to admire their handiwork.

A rampant grin consumed Alec’s face. “It’s  _perfect_.”

Magnus smirked at his boyfriend. “You think it’ll work?”

“Definitely,” Alec asserted with a firm nod.

A couple days later, it was at last time for the party. True to his word, Magnus had prepared a shallow bowl filled to the brim with toasted pumpkin seeds, their kick sending Alec’s eyes rolling in delight. “These are  _amazing_!” he groaned around a mouthful of seeds.

Magnus gently batted at his hand as he made to grab for more. “Leave some for our guests, Alexander!” he laughed. “How are the cookies doing?”

Alec twisted around to eye the oven, squinting through the translucent, protective glass. “They’ve got about a couple minutes left, I think.” He checked the clock, then darted out of the kitchen towards Magnus’s cabinet. “The candles are in here, right? People are going to arrive soon!”

“Yes,” Magnus called as he set the bowl of seeds upon a console table by the entrance. “Right side, second drawer from the bottom.” He eyed the display, tweaking some of the decorations a bit so the whole thing looked just right, then turned around to find Alec standing beside him, brow raised.

“Some of those candles looked awfully thin,” Alec remarked with a suspicious look.

Magnus’s eyes sparkled wickedly. “Perhaps one day you’ll be ‘experimental’ enough to find out what they’re for,” he chided, placing a kiss upon Alec’s cheek and plucking the stout candle from his hand.

“I think I already know,” Alec replied, a gentle blush coloring his cheeks. He retrieved their pumpkin and removed the top, holding out the cavity in the hug of a single, strong arm. “When do you think he’ll show?”

“Clary said they were already on their way,” Magnus murmured, most of his focus directly to carefully placing the candle inside the pumpkin. When he was certain it was stable, he backed away and let Alec place the whole thing down upon a nearby table. With a snap of his fingers, the candle flickered to life, and Alec replaced the gap with excited glee.

They anxiously occupied their waning moments with various last-minute preparations, making sure everything was in place. Their costumes were donned, the food was prepared in elegant arrangements, the decorations covered every inch of their loft, and with the lights dimmed their carved pumpkin cast an eerie glow upon the foyer.

Finally, their first guests arrived. Alec ran to the door, knowing it’d be Clary and Jace. He peered through the peep hole just to be sure, discovering their friends hand-in-hand as a pirate and sailor. Clary wove her hook before them, Jace still fussing with his navy-blue neckerchief. “Helloooo?” she called. “Anybody home?”

Alec looked over his shoulder to share an excited wink with Magnus, then swiftly gathered himself, took a steadying breath, and pulled the door open. “Clary, Jace!” he cried, greeting them both with a hug. After, and  _only_  after, did he finally step aside to let them in, one right after the other. “Welcome, come on it!”

Clary’s eyes found the pumpkin, and her hands slapped to her mouth to stifle her giggle.

Jace stepped in after her. “Hey, budd— _AAHHH!!!_ ” Clary, Magnus, and Alec all burst into rampant laughter as Jace jerked back, colliding wide-eyed against the threshold to the loft. A moment later, he glared at Alec and threw a punch to his parabatai’s arm. “A fucking vampire ducky? Are you  _serious_?!”

Alec snickered. “It was  _Magnus’s_  idea!”

Magnus defensively threw up his hands. “Alec had a very specific list of criteria!”

Ultimately, Jace rolled his eyes at the both of them and swiftly stalked beyond the ominously-glowing ducky carving. “You’re filthy traitors, the both of you!”

Through their dying laughter, Alec and Magnus shared a triumphant smirk. “Not bad, if I do say so myself,” Magnus remarked.

Alec agreed with a victory kiss. “Nope. Not bad at all!”


End file.
